Next month, activist Kurtis Hanna will speak to the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy about removing cannabis from its list of Schedule 1 narcotics.

His argument is simple: State law says cannabis has "no currently accepted medical use in the United States," but that's not true. Not only did Minnesota just approve a medical cannabis program, but more than half the United States now allows cannabis or some kind of CBD-rich oil for treatment.

Running on a platform of campaign finance reform is admirable. But turns out it's not electable.

John Denney found out the hard way. The Independence Party candidate looking to snag Michele Bachmann's old spot on Tuesday made a unique promise to the world: He wasn't taking any money from corporations, special interests, nothing. He was going as grassroots as grassroots can be.

"Right now, looking on it, last night sucked," Jenkins told us from the Independence Party headquarters yesterday morning.

Jenkins had just been dealt a bloodbath. For 20 years, his party -- the party of Gov. Jesse Ventura, U.S. Sen. Paul Barkley, and gubernatorial candidate Tom Horner -- had competed hard in the state, sharing a stage with the GOP and DFL. And yet, with no statewide candidate managing to grab enough of the vote, the party was demoted.

Election night in Minnesota was not a very surprising affair. While the rest of the country sat on the edge of its seat as the "GOP wave" swept in, our state ended up largely sticking with the status quo.

But one of the most interesting threadlines throughout the night was the Green Party's Andy Dawkins. The attorney general candidate had been seen as something of a savior for the Green Party, which had basically disappeared out of relevance in Minnesota. The Strib even hyped him up, saying he could "usher in a new era for the party."

We didn't think the political manipulation could get much worse after we saw the Republican Party of Minnesota's ridiculous, fear-inducing Ebola mailers last week targeting Al Franken. Turns out we were dead wrong.

This week, the party has decided to head to the radio to push out another fear-mongering message, this one blasting Mark Dayton for not cutting off flights to West Africa (despite the fact that scientists and health experts don't want that).

New mailers paid for by the Minnesota Republican Party allege that Democrats in the legislature are "weakening penalties for dangerous drunk drivers."

At issue is a bill signed into law earlier this year that requires people with multiple DUI convictions to use an
ignition interlock device when they start driving again, thereby preventing them from even starting
their cars if they are impaired. The bill was supported by MADD and approved unanimously in the Senate.

Just when we thought political mailers had hit rock bottom, we find the above image floating around the internet.

It comes from the Republican Party of Minnesota, which is trying hard to make the Ebola virus a top issue for this year's Senate race against incumbent Dem Al Franken. GOP candidate Mike McFadden has argued that a ban on travel between West African countries, where the virus has already killed thousands, and the United States is the best way to contain it.

The historically left-leaning paper's endorsement of a Republican created a bit of a stir and led some to wonder whether the Strib's new owner -- former Republican legislator Glen Taylor -- has started exerting his influence on the editorial board.

Rep. Mary Franson (R-Alexandria) has kept a much lower profile this election cycle than she did two years ago, when she said many outrageous things before winning what had to be the tightest House race in the state. (Recall that Franson went to bed on election night ahead by a single vote.)

Since Franson represents a solidly red district, the avoid-headlines strategy is probably shrewd politics, but the DFL is confident they'll take her out next Tuesday nonetheless.